Systems and methods for determining orthodontic treatments

ABSTRACT

A method of determining an orthodontic treatment comprising: obtaining a 3D model of a simulated position of upper and lower teeth following a simulated orthodontic treatment, the 3D model comprising a point cloud representation comprising a plurality of vector points; in a 3D grid having cells onto which the plurality of the vector points have been mapped, identifying cells containing vectors points representative of the upper teeth and applying a first mask to these cells; identifying cells containing vectors points representative of the lower teeth and applying a second mask to these cells; determining the simulated orthodontic treatment as the determined orthodontic treatment if the 3D grid does not include at least one cell which includes both the first mask and the second mask.

FIELD

The present technology relates to determining orthodontic treatments ingeneral, and more specifically but not limited to, computer-implementedsystems and methods for determining orthodontic treatments by detectingcollisions between teeth during orthodontic treatment simulation.

BACKGROUND

In orthodontics, treatments for achieving alignment of malposed teeth ina subject include applying orthodontic appliances to the subject'steeth. One type of orthodontic appliance comprises pre-shapedorthodontic wires attached to brackets which are themselves attached tothe teeth of the subject. The wires, also known as archwires, aretypically made from shape memory alloys which have the ability torecover their shape after being deformed. Another type of orthodonticappliance comprises orthodontic aligners which are typically worn overthe teeth of the top and/or bottom archforms in order to exert loads tothe teeth to induce tooth movements or to retain tooth positions.Although they are removable, aligners are typically arranged to be wornfor extended periods during the day and/or night.

A typical orthodontic treatment comprises a number of consecutivetreatment steps in which different orthodontic appliances areconsecutively used to apply different forces to the teeth as thealignment progresses. In the case of archwires and brackets used as theorthodontic appliance, archwires of different shapes and/or stiffnessmay be used. In the case of aligners, the aligners may have differentshapes for applying different forces to the teeth.

In some cases, the treatment steps may be classified as an aligningstage, a levelling stage, a working stage, a finishing stage and asettling stage. In some cases, the treatment steps comprise an initialstage, a transitional stage and a finishing stage. The treatment stagesmay include an imposed orthodontic action such as rotation or linearmovement of one or more teeth, development of the archform, a levellingof the arches, torque control or retention of the position. Generally,the earlier treatment stages apply more gentle forces compared to thelater treatment stages.

Computer simulation of the movement of the subject's teeth may be usedfor planning one or more of the orthodontic treatment steps. During suchsimulation, movement of the teeth between a start position and a desiredposition is simulated. However, the simulated movement may proveinaccurate compared to the actual physical movement of the teeth becauseof potential collisions between the teeth during the movement. Thismeans that the simulated orthodontic treatment does not reflectaccurately the actual effect of the orthodontic treatment, making theplanning of orthodontic treatments difficult.

Some prior art methods use Bounding Volume Hierarchies algorithms toreduce the number of operations required for collision detection, andfor rendering the simulation more cost effective in terms of processingrequirements, using 3D models of the teeth represented by polygonalmeshes.

In U.S. Pat. No. 9,848,958, three dimensional (3D) mesh model object ofteeth of a patient are generated, and bounding boxes are generatedaround each tooth. Overlapping bounding boxes are taken as an indicationof potential occlusion of those teeth.

In U.S. Pat. No. 6,334,853 describes a method for obtaining a dentalocclusion map of a 3D virtual computer model of teeth of upper and lowerjaws of a mouth. The occlusion map indicates the distances betweenopposite regions on facing surfaces of opposite teeth of the upper andlower jaws of the mouth. The method includes the steps of determiningthe distances between opposite regions on opposite teeth of the upperand lower jaws of the mouth, and setting up a correspondence between thedetermined distances and regions on a mapping surface.

It is desired to provide improved methods and systems for determiningorthodontic treatments.

SUMMARY

It is an object of the present technology to ameliorate at least some ofthe inconveniences present in the prior art.

In certain aspects and embodiments of the present technology, it isdesired to determine collisions, during a simulated orthodontictreatment, between one or more of (i) adjacent teeth, (ii) opposingteeth, and (iii) orthodontic appliances, in the oral region of thesubject.

In some conventional orthodontic simulation systems which do not takeinto account collisions, the teeth tend to move through each other. Asthis is not representative of the actual movement of the teeth of thesubject during the orthodontic treatment, an outcome of the simulatedorthodontic treatment and the actual orthodontic treatment will differ.

In other simulation systems, the sites of potential collision betweenthe teeth are highlighted in the simulation, but these tend to lackaccuracy. This again results in the simulated movement of the teethduring the orthodontic treatment differing from the actual movement ofthe teeth, limiting the usefulness of the orthodontic treatmentsimulation.

In existing computer-based systems which attempt to detect and highlightpotential collisions during a simulated orthodontic treatment, aconsiderable amount of processing resources is required due to a largenumber of computations.

According to certain aspects and embodiments of the present technology,collision of teeth during a simulated orthodontic treatment aredetected, allowing the adjustment or optimization of the simulatedorthodontic treatment appropriately in order to avoid the collision.

According to certain other embodiments of the present technology,collision of upper and lower teeth of respective upper and lowerarchforms during a simulated orthodontic treatment are detected,allowing the adjustment of the simulated orthodontic treatmentappropriately in order to avoid the collision. In certain embodiments,the orthodontic treatment comprises an appropriate spacing of the upperand lower archforms of the subject during the simulated orthodontictreatment.

From one aspect, there is provided a method of determining anorthodontic treatment for a subject, the method executable by aprocessor, the method comprising: obtaining a 3D model of upper teeth ofan upper archform and lower teeth of a lower archform of a subject, the3D model representative of a simulated position of the upper teeth andthe lower teeth following a simulated orthodontic treatment, the 3Dmodel comprising a point cloud representation of the upper teeth and thelower teeth, the point cloud representation comprising a plurality ofvector points representative of the upper teeth and the lower teeth;identifying whether there is collision between the upper teeth and thelower teeth in the simulated position by: in a 3D grid in a simulationspace onto which the plurality of the vector points representative ofthe upper teeth and the lower teeth have been mapped, identifying cellsof the 3D grid containing vectors points representative of the upperteeth; identifying cells of the 3D grid containing vectors pointsrepresentative of the lower teeth; applying a first mask to the cells inthe 3D grid which include vector points representative of the upperteeth; applying a second mask to the cells in the 3D grid which includevector points representative of the lower teeth; determining if there isat least one cell in the 3D grid which includes both the first mask andthe second mask; and selectively executing: if the 3D grid does notinclude at least one cell which includes both the first mask and thesecond mask, determining that there is no collision between the upperteeth and the lower teeth, and determining the simulated orthodontictreatment as the determined orthodontic treatment, if there is at leastone cell in the 3D grid which includes both the first mask and thesecond mask, determining that there is collision between the upper teethand the lower teeth, and adjusting the simulated orthodontic treatment.

According to certain embodiments, the method further comprisestransforming each vector point of the plurality of vector points into avector sphere representative of the upper teeth and the lower teeth, thevector sphere comprising a sphere having a predetermined diameter andcentered at each vector point.

According to certain embodiments, the obtaining the point cloudrepresentation of the upper teeth and the lower teeth comprisesobtaining a triangular mesh 3D model of the upper teeth and the lowerteeth and converting the triangular mesh 3D model of the upper teeth andthe lower teeth to the point cloud representation.

According to certain embodiments, the method further comprisessegmenting the 3D model of the upper teeth and the lower teeth todistinguish the upper teeth and the lower teeth.

According to certain embodiments, the method further comprisesiteratively updating the point cloud representation of the upper teethand the lower teeth with an adjusted position of the upper teeth and thelower teeth following the adjusted simulated orthodontic treatment, anddetermining whether there is collision or not between the upper teethand the lower teeth, until it is determined that there is no collisionbetween the upper teeth and the lower teeth.

According to certain embodiments, the method further comprises obtainingthe 3D model representative of the simulated position of the upper teethand the lower teeth following the simulated orthodontic treatment byexecuting the simulation of the movement of the upper teeth and thelower teeth from an initial position to the simulated position.

According to certain embodiments, the method further comprises executingthe adjusted simulation of the upper teeth and the lower teeth byadapting a simulated movement of at least one of the upper teeth and thelower teeth from the simulated position to an adjusted simulatedposition.

According to certain embodiments, the adapted simulated movement isrepresentative of a shorter distance of movement of the upper teeth andthe lower teeth from one another to the adjusted simulated position.

According to certain embodiments, the method further comprises detectingone or more of false positives and false negatives.

According to certain embodiments, the method further comprisesidentifying a magnitude of collision of the upper teeth and the lowerteeth, and adjusting the simulated position of the upper teeth and thelower teeth by an amount proportional to the identified magnitude ofcollision.

According to certain embodiments, the method further comprises sendinginstructions to a display device operably connected to the processor todisplay the collision as a pictorial representation of the collision oras an alphanumerical representation of the collision.

According to certain embodiments, the method further comprises designingthe orthodontic appliance to administer the confirmed orthodontictreatment.

According to certain embodiments, the method further comprises sendinginstructions to a manufacturing apparatus operably connected to theprocessor for making at least a component of the orthodontic applianceto administer the confirmed orthodontic treatment.

According to certain embodiments, the method further comprises mappingthe plurality of vector points representative of the upper teeth and thelower teeth onto the 3D grid of the simulation space.

According to certain embodiments, the method further comprisessegmenting the 3D model of one or both of the upper teeth and the lowerteeth to distinguish individual teeth of one or both of the upper teethand the lower teeth, and wherein the method comprises identifyingwhether there is collision between a given upper tooth of the upperteeth and a given lower tooth of the lower teeth by: identifying cellsof the 3D grid containing vector points representative of the givenupper tooth of the upper teeth; identifying cells of the 3D gridcontaining vectors points representative of the given lower tooth of thelower teeth; applying a first mask to the cells in the 3D grid whichinclude vector points representative of the given upper tooth of theupper teeth; applying a second mask to the cells in the 3D grid whichinclude vector points representative of the given lower tooth of thelower teeth; determining if there is at least one cell in the 3D gridwhich includes both the first mask and the second mask.

According to certain embodiments, the 3D model representative of asimulated position of the upper teeth and the lower teeth following asimulated orthodontic treatment includes a 3D model of an orthodonticappliance associated with one or both of the upper and the lower teeth,the 3D model representative of a simulated position of the orthodonticappliance relative to the one or both of the upper teeth and the lowerteeth, the 3D model of the orthodontic appliance comprising a pointcloud representation of the orthodontic appliance, the point cloudrepresentation comprising a plurality of vector points representative ofthe orthodontic appliance; identifying whether there is collisionbetween the orthodontic appliance and the one or both of the upper teethand the lower teeth in the simulated position by: in a 3D grid in asimulation space onto which the plurality of the vector pointsrepresentative of the upper teeth and the lower teeth have been mapped,identifying cells of the 3D grid containing vectors pointsrepresentative of the one or both of the upper teeth and the lowerteeth; identifying cells of the 3D grid containing vectors pointsrepresentative of the orthodontic appliance; applying a first mask tothe cells in the 3D grid which include vector points representative ofthe one or both of the upper teeth and the lower teeth; applying asecond mask to the cells in the 3D grid which include vector pointsrepresentative of the orthodontic appliance; and determining if there isat least one cell in the 3D grid which includes both the first mask andthe second mask.

According to certain embodiments, the 3D model representative of asimulated position of the upper teeth and the lower teeth following asimulated orthodontic treatment includes a 3D model of a firstorthodontic appliance and a second orthodontic appliance associated withone or both of the upper and the lower teeth, the 3D modelrepresentative of a simulated position of the first orthodonticappliance and the second orthodontic appliance relative to the one orboth of the upper teeth and the lower teeth, the 3D model of the firstorthodontic appliance and the second orthodontic appliance comprising apoint cloud representation of the first orthodontic appliance and thesecond orthodontic appliance, the point cloud representation comprisinga plurality of vector points representative of the first orthodonticappliance and the second orthodontic appliance; identifying whetherthere is collision between the first orthodontic appliance and thesecond orthodontic appliance in the simulated position by: in a 3D gridin a simulation space onto which the plurality of the vector pointsrepresentative of the upper teeth and the lower teeth have been mapped,identifying cells of the 3D grid containing vectors pointsrepresentative of the first orthodontic appliance; identifying cells ofthe 3D grid containing vectors points representative of the secondorthodontic appliance; applying a first mask to the cells in the 3D gridwhich include vector points representative of the first orthodonticappliance; applying a second mask to the cells in the 3D grid whichinclude vector points representative of the second orthodonticappliance; and determining if there is at least one cell in the 3D gridwhich includes both the first mask and the second mask.

In certain embodiments of the present technology, collision detectionbetween one or more potentially colliding items in the oral space of asubject (e.g. adjacent teeth, portions of one or more appliancesassociated with the teeth) can be detected accurately and with limitedcomputer resources. Advantageously, the use of point cloudrepresentations and measuring only distances of vector points in cellsof the 3D grid associated with overlapping areas of boundary boxesassociated with the potentially colliding items, is not overly demandingfrom a perspective of required computer resources.

During tooth motion simulation the spatial decomposition needs to berebuilt. In the case of a bounding volume hierarchy (BVH), such asbi-tree, kd-tree, the rebuilding process is computationally demanding,which requires more powerful and expensive computer hardware. Thecomputational demand can also lead to technical problems, where certainoperations are not possible to complete.

Conversely, the rebuilding of a regular grid with redistribution ofpoint cloud, as provided by embodiments of the present technology, isless computationally expensive. Operations are able to be completed.

Furthermore, the relatively narrow intersection checks between pointcloud spheres are considerably less expensive in terms of computationcompared to traditional exact separating axis tests (SAT).

In the context of the present specification, unless expressly providedotherwise, a computer system may refer, but is not limited to, an“electronic device”, an “operation system”, a “system”, a“computer-based system”, a “controller unit”, a “control device” and/orany combination thereof appropriate to the relevant task at hand.

In the context of the present specification, unless expressly providedotherwise, the expression “computer-readable medium” and “memory” areintended to include media of any nature and kind whatsoever,non-limiting examples of which include RAM, ROM, disks (CD-ROMs, DVDs,floppy disks, hard disk drives, etc.), USB keys, flash memory cards,solid state-drives, and tape drives.

In the context of the present specification, a “database” is anystructured collection of data, irrespective of its particular structure,the database management software, or the computer hardware on which thedata is stored, implemented or otherwise rendered available for use. Adatabase may reside on the same hardware as the process that stores ormakes use of the information stored in the database or it may reside onseparate hardware, such as a dedicated server or plurality of servers.

In the context of the present specification, unless expressly providedotherwise, the words “first”, “second”, “third”, etc. have been used asadjectives only for the purpose of allowing for distinction between thenouns that they modify from one another, and not for the purpose ofdescribing any particular relationship between those nouns.

Implementations of the present technology each have at least one of theabove-mentioned object and/or aspects, but do not necessarily have allof them. It should be understood that some aspects of the presenttechnology that have resulted from attempting to attain theabove-mentioned object may not satisfy this object and/or may satisfyother objects not specifically recited herein.

Additional and/or alternative features, aspects and advantages ofimplementations of the present technology will become apparent from thefollowing description, the accompanying drawings and the appendedclaims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the present technology, as well as otheraspects and further features thereof, reference is made to the followingdescription which is to be used in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, where:

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of teeth of a lower archform of apatient showing a bracket and archwire type orthodontic applianceattached to the teeth for applying an orthodontic treatment to theteeth.

FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of five of the teeth of FIG. 1including the orthodontic appliance viewed from the side.

FIG. 3 is a schematic illustration of some teeth of an upper archform ofanother patient showing an aligner type orthodontic appliance forapplying an orthodontic treatment to the teeth.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view through the line 3-3′ of the aligner ofFIG. 3, with the teeth omitted for clarity.

FIG. 5 depicts a representation of initial and desired positions ofteeth of a subject in planning an orthodontic treatment.

FIG. 6 is a zoomed-in view of three of the teeth of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 depicts a representation of the initial and desired positions ofthe teeth of FIG. 2.

FIG. 8 is a schematic illustration of a system for determining anorthodontic treatment for a subject as implemented in accordance with atleast some non-limiting embodiments of the present technology.

FIG. 9 is a schematic illustration of a computing environment of thesystem of FIG. 8 as implemented in accordance with at least somenon-limiting embodiments of the present technology.

FIG. 10 is a schematic illustration of a method of determining anorthodontic treatment for a subject executable by the computingenvironment of FIG. 9, in accordance with at least some embodiments ofthe present technology.

FIGS. 11A and 11B are front view and side view, respectively, of anexample image of teeth to be used in the method of FIG. 10, inaccordance with at least some embodiments of the present technology.

FIG. 12A is an example image of a tooth to be used in the method of FIG.10, in accordance with at least some embodiments of the presenttechnology.

FIG. 12B is a 3D model of the tooth of FIG. 12A to be used in the methodof FIG. 10, in accordance with at least some embodiments of the presenttechnology derived from the image.

FIG. 13 is a schematic illustration of a portion of the 3D model of FIG.12B comprising a point cloud representation, in accordance with at leastsome embodiments of the present technology derived from the image.

FIG. 14 is a schematic illustration of a 3D model of two opposing teethpositioned in a 3D grid of simulation space, to be used in the method ofFIG. 10, in accordance with at least some embodiments of the presenttechnology.

FIG. 15 is a schematic illustration of the 3D model of the two opposingteeth of FIG. 14 with cell masking, in accordance with at least someembodiments of the present technology.

FIGS. 16A, 16B and 16C are schematic illustrations of the teeth of FIG.7 showing a proposed orthodontic treatment, a collision event, and anadjusted orthodontic treatment after collision detection, respectively,in accordance with at least some embodiments of the present technology.

FIGS. 17A and 17B are schematic illustrations of different embodimentsof a display of the determined collision between (A) two opposing teeth,and (B) a plurality of teeth, in accordance with at least some otherembodiments of the present technology.

It should be noted that, unless otherwise explicitly specified herein,the drawings are not to scale.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The examples and conditional language recited herein are principallyintended to aid the reader in understanding the principles of thepresent technology and not to limit its scope to such specificallyrecited examples and conditions. It will be appreciated that thoseskilled in the art may devise various arrangements which, although notexplicitly described or shown herein, nonetheless embody the principlesof the present technology and are included within its spirit and scope.

Furthermore, as an aid to understanding, the following description maydescribe relatively simplified implementations of the presenttechnology. As persons skilled in the art would understand, variousimplementations of the present technology may be of a greatercomplexity.

In some cases, what are believed to be helpful examples of modificationsto the present technology may also be set forth. This is done merely asan aid to understanding, and, again, not to define the scope or setforth the bounds of the present technology. These modifications are notan exhaustive list, and a person skilled in the art may make othermodifications while nonetheless remaining within the scope of thepresent technology. Further, where no examples of modifications havebeen set forth, it should not be interpreted that no modifications arepossible and/or that what is described is the sole manner ofimplementing that element of the present technology.

Moreover, all statements herein reciting principles, aspects, andimplementations of the technology, as well as specific examples thereof,are intended to encompass both structural and functional equivalentsthereof, whether they are currently known or developed in the future.Thus, for example, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the artthat any block diagrams herein represent conceptual views ofillustrative circuitry embodying the principles of the presenttechnology. Similarly, it will be appreciated that any flowcharts, flowdiagrams, state transition diagrams, pseudo-code, and the like representvarious processes which may be substantially represented incomputer-readable media and so executed by a computer or processor,whether or not such computer or processor is explicitly shown.

The functions of the various elements shown in the figures, includingany functional block labeled as a “processor”, may be provided throughthe use of dedicated hardware as well as hardware capable of executingsoftware in association with appropriate software. When provided by aprocessor, the functions may be provided by a single dedicatedprocessor, by a single shared processor, or by a plurality of individualprocessors, some of which may be shared. Moreover, explicit use of theterm “processor” or “controller” should not be construed to referexclusively to hardware capable of executing software, and mayimplicitly include, without limitation, digital signal processor (DSP)hardware, network processor, application specific integrated circuit(ASIC), field programmable gate array (FPGA), read-only memory (ROM) forstoring software, random access memory (RAM), and non-volatile storage.Other hardware, conventional and/or custom, may also be included.

Software modules, or simply modules which are implied to be software,may be represented herein as any combination of flowchart elements orother elements indicating performance of process steps and/or textualdescription. Such modules may be executed by hardware that is expresslyor implicitly shown.

With these fundamentals in place, we will now consider some non-limitingexamples to illustrate various implementations of aspects of the presenttechnology.

Broadly embodiments of the present technology are directed tocomputer-implemented methods and systems for determining or optimizingan orthodontic treatment. Other embodiments of the present technologyare directed to computer-implemented methods and systems for designingorthodontic appliances for providing a determined orthodontic treatment.In order to facilitate an appreciation of the present technology,examples of orthodontic treatments and orthodontic appliances resultingfrom certain embodiments of the present technology will be describedbelow, before describing the systems and methods relating to the presenttechnology.

Orthodontic Treatments Using Orthodontic Appliances

Orthodontic treatments are used for treating different conditionsrelating to teeth misalignment or malocclusion, including but notlimited to one or more of: tooth rotation, tooth intrusion/extrusion,tooth translation, and interdental space management. Interdental spacemanagement may include one or more of closing embrasures, creatinginterproximal contacts, opening embrasures, and eliminatinginterproximal contacts.

Orthodontic appliances 10 used in certain optimized or determinedorthodontic treatments, according to certain embodiments of the presenttechnology, include bracket/archwire systems 10 a (FIGS. 1 and 2), oraligner systems 10 b (FIGS. 3 and 4), amongst others.

In the bracket/archwire system 10 a of FIGS. 1 and 2, according tocertain embodiments, there is provided a bracket 12 and an archwire 14.The bracket/archwire system 10 a is depicted as applied to the teeth ofa lower archform of a subject (not shown), with the brackets 12 beingattached to internal surfaces 18 of the teeth 16 in a lingualconfiguration. However, it is contemplated that the orthodonticappliance 10 may be applied in other configurations, such as in a buccalconfiguration (attached to external surfaces 20 (outer-sides) of theteeth 16 of the lower jaw), for example. It is also contemplated that inother embodiments of the present technology, the orthodontic appliance10 may be applied on teeth 16 of an upper archform of the subject in anyone of a palatal configuration (attached to inner-sides of teeth of theupper jaw) and a labial configuration (attached to outer-sides of theteeth of the upper jaw) (not shown).

The brackets 12 are provided on respective teeth 16 (shown individuallyas 16 a, 16 b, 16 c, 16 d, 16 e in FIG. 2), and the archwire 14 extendsbetween, and is connected to, each of the brackets 12. In theillustrated example, the subject has a malocclusion—that is, amisalignment—of the tooth 16 c for which the orthodontic treatmentincludes an upward movement of the tooth 16 c so that the tooth 16 c isaligned with neighboring the teeth 16 a, 16 b, 16 d, 16 e. The archwire14 is made of a shape memory alloy, such as Nitinol™ and is shaped suchthat it exerts an upward force to the tooth 16 c in use. The archwire 14can also be made of any other shape memory alloy, or of a material withelastic properties. In certain embodiments, the bracket/archwire system10 a is designed to impart the orthodontic treatment determined bycertain embodiments of the methods and systems, which will be describedbelow.

In the aligner system 10 b of FIGS. 3 and 4, according to certainembodiments, there is provided an aligner 22 made according to certainaspects and non-limiting embodiments of the present technology, andarranged to impart the orthodontic treatment determined or optimized bymethods and systems of the present technology.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the aligner 22 is for an upper archform 24(also referred to as “upper arch” or “upper dental arch”) of anothersubject. The upper arch 24 comprises teeth 16 and gums 19. In otherembodiments (not shown), the aligner 22 is provided for a lower dentalarch of the subject. In yet other embodiments, aligners 22 for both thelower arch and the upper arch 24 are provided.

The aligner 22 comprises an aligner body 30 having an inner surface 32and an outer surface 34. The inner surface 32 defines a channel 36 forreceiving at least some teeth 16 of the upper arch of the subject. Atleast one edge 38 of the channel 36 is shaped for intimately followingthe subject's gums 28 along a gumline 40 of the subject. In theembodiment of FIGS. 3 and 4, the aligner 22 is arranged to receive allthe teeth 16 of the upper arch 24 of the subject. In certain otherembodiments, the aligner 22 is arranged to receive some, not all, of theteeth 16 of the subject.

According to certain embodiments, a thickness of the aligner body 30,measurable from the inner surface 32 to the outer surface 34 along adirection substantially normal to the inner surface 32, is substantiallyuniform across the aligner body 30.

In other embodiments, the thickness of the aligner body 30 is variable.For example, in some embodiments, the aligner 10 may further includeretentive features for retaining the aligner 22 with respect to theteeth 16. Such retentive features can be for example aligner blocksextending outwardly from the inner surface 32 to engage the teeth 16 inuse. Other retentive elements can be aligner recesses defined in theinner surface 32 and sized to engagingly receive blocks affixed to theteeth 16 (not shown).

The aligner 22 is made of a polymer, such as a thermoplastic material.In certain embodiments, the aligner 22 is made of poly-vinyl chloride(PVC). In certain other embodiments, the aligner 22 is made ofpolyethylene terephthalate glycol (PETG). Other suitable materials canalso be used to form the aligner 22. In the case of PETG and PVC, thealigner 22 is substantially transparent. The aligner 22 may be made ofother materials having properties that are typically desirable inaligners 22, such as one or more of: low surface roughness, hightranslucency and mechanical strength adapted for bearing typicalorthodontic loads.

It will be appreciated that the present technology can be applied todesign and/or make different types, shapes, sizes and configurations oforthodontic appliances 10, such as, without limitation, multi-strandwires, strips, retainers, and plates. It will also be appreciated thatthe orthodontic appliance 10 may be used for treating any type of teethmisalignment or malocclusion.

Orthodontic treatments using orthodontic appliances 10, such as thebracket/archwire system 10 a of FIGS. 1 and 2, or the aligner system 10b of FIGS. 3 and 4, comprise sequential treatment steps, in certainembodiments, in which different orthodontic appliances 10 are applied tothe teeth 16 at each treatment step to apply different forces. In someorthodontic treatments, there is an initial stage where the teeth 16 arefirst treated for leveling and alignment. If the orthodontic appliance10 comprises brackets 12 and archwires 14, archwires 14 which generate acontinuous and light force over a relatively longer period of time aregenerally preferred for this initial stage. In other stages, a strongerforce may be required for a relatively shorter period. The material typeand diameter of the archwire 14 influences the forces applied to theteeth 16. Generally, archwires 14 with a broader diameter exert a higherforce than narrower archwires 14. Material properties such as strength,stiffness and elasticity, as well as shape memory properties alsoinfluence the forces applied to the teeth 16. Therefore, there are manyparameter combinations to consider when designing the orthodontictreatment and each of the treatment steps.

Referring now to FIG. 5, generally, in determining the orthodontictreatment, an initial position 42 of a given tooth 16 is determined,such as by imaging of the patient's teeth 16 or by taking a physicalmold. A desired position 44 of the teeth 16 is then identified. This canbe performed manually, semi-automatically or automatically. In certainembodiments, the desired position 44 is determined by an orthodontist orother medical practitioner. Depending on the initial and desiredpositions 42, 44 of the tooth 16, a trajectory 46 of the movement of thetooth 16 from the initial position 42 to the desired position 44 isdefined. In certain embodiments, the trajectory is one or more of adirect linear path, a plurality of stepped linear paths and a rotationalpath.

FIG. 5 depicts a representation of the initial and desired positions 42,44 of the teeth 16 of the subject in the lower jaw, and FIG. 6 shows anenlarged view of three of the teeth 16 of FIG. 5: a lower left lateraltooth 48, a lower left cuspid tooth 50 and a lower left first bicuspidtooth 52. The initial positions 42 of these three teeth 48, 50, 52 areshown as a solid line. The desired positions 44 of each of these threeteeth 48, 50, 52 are shown in dotted line. As can be seen, to bepositioned in the desired position 44, the lower left lateral tooth 48will need to be moved laterally and rotationally along a trajectory 46a, the lower left cuspid tooth 50 will need to be moved linearly towardsthe middle 48 of the jaw along the trajectory 46 b, and the lower leftfirst bicuspid 52 will need to be moved linearly away from the middle 48of the jaw along the trajectory 46 c.

The orthodontic treatment may comprise a number of treatment steps formoving the given tooth 16 from the initial position 42 to the desiredposition 44. In other words, the given tooth would be moved from theinitial position 42 to the desired position 44 in stages. Each stage maybe determined by a different load provided by a different orthodonticappliance 10. It may be determined, for example, that the given tooth 16is to be moved 3 mm in three consecutive treatment step in order tominimize any damage to the subject's gums 28 and tooth roots. Certainmethods of determination of orthodontic treatment steps in orthodontictreatments are described in U.S. Ser. No. 16/132,995 filed Sep. 17,2018, the contents of which are incorporated herein.

However, in some cases, the movement of the given tooth 16 from theinitial position 42 to the desired position 44 along the trajectory 46which is a direct linear path may not be possible due to a possiblecollision with another tooth 16 or another structure, such as a part ofthe orthodontic appliance applied to the teeth, whilst moving from theinitial position 42 to the desired position 44.

FIG. 7 depicts a schematic illustration of an example where such atooth-tooth collision would occur. In the example of FIG. 7, the teeth16 a, 16 b, 16 c, 16 d, and 16 e of FIG. 2 are depicted, with thetrajectory 46 of the tooth 16 c (of FIG. 2) as a direct path illustratedto move the tooth 16 c between the initial position 42 and the desiredposition 44. As can be seen, the given tooth 16 c would collide withtooth 16 b at a collision point 56. This would mean that if theorthodontic treatment is defined along the trajectory 46 being a directpath and not taking into account the collision, the actual movement ofthe tooth 16 c and the actual position of the tooth 16 c after theorthodontic treatment would differ from the desired position 44. Theconsequences therefore of not taking into account such collisions areserious, and can also impact the movement of other teeth adjacent orclose to the tooth 16 c.

As will be described below, methods and systems of the presenttechnology can predict such potential collisions in order to determinethe orthodontic treatment or to fine-tune the orthodontic treatment.Developers have discovered that identification of such potentialcollisions can be used to adapt the orthodontic treatment, such as thetrajectory 46 for moving the tooth 16 from the initial position 42 tothe desired position 44 in one or more steps of the orthodontictreatment, to avoid the collision. Identification of the potentialcollision can also enable the clinician to avoid the collision by othermeans such as removing enamel from one of the teeth 16 involved in thepotential collision.

Turning now to FIG. 8, a system 100 suitable for determining theorthodontic treatment and/or for making the orthodontic appliance 10according to the determined orthodontic treatment will be described,according to aspects and embodiments of the present technology. By“determining the orthodontic treatment” is meant one or both of:validating a proposed orthodontic treatment, and adapting the proposedorthodontic treatment to optimize the proposed orthodontic treatment.

System

With reference to FIG. 8, there is depicted a non-limiting example of asystem 100 as contemplated in at least some embodiments of the presenttechnology. Broadly speaking, the system 100 is configured to executeone or more of (i) process information associated with a subject, (ii)process information associated with a proposed orthodontic treatment,(iii) determine information relating to a proposed orthodontic treatmentor adapted orthodontic treatment, (iv) generate 3D representations of atleast some components of an orthodontic appliance 10 based on thatinformation, and (v) manufacture (and/or generate instructions fortriggering manufacture of) the at least some components of theorthodontic appliance 10 based on the respective 3D representations.

As will be described in greater detail below, the system 100 isconfigured to acquire and process information representative of at leasta portion of an oral region of the subject. The oral region can includeone or more of the teeth 16 and/or gums 28 of the upper arch 24 or thelower arch (such as those illustrated in FIGS. 1-7). The informationrepresentative of at least a portion of an oral region of the subjectincludes image data in certain embodiments.

In certain embodiments, the system 100 is configured to process thisinformation for designing the orthodontic treatment for the subjectwhich may include at least some components of the orthodontic appliance10 to be applied in the orthodontic treatment, such as, for example, thealigner system 10 b of FIGS. 3 and 4, the bracket/archwire system 10 aof FIGS. 1 and 2.

In certain embodiments of the present technology, the system 100 isconfigured to process the information representative of at least aportion of the oral region of the subject for designing at least somecomponents of the orthodontic treatment or the orthodontic appliance 10with minimal or no operator intervention (e.g., with little or no directoperator control). Put another way, the system 100 may be configured todesign at least some components of the orthodontic appliance 10 or theorthodontic treatment in an automatic or semi-automatic manner. Forexample, to that end, in at least some embodiments of the presenttechnology, the system 100 may be configured to employ computer-readableinstructions (such as software, for example) for auto-generating atleast some components of the orthodontic appliance or the orthodontictreatment.

As it will also be described in greater detail below, the system 100 maybe configured to manufacture (and/or generate data indicative ofinstructions for manufacturing) at least some components of theorthodontic appliance 10. For example, the system 100 may be configuredto (i) process information indicative of the at least some components ofthe orthodontic appliance 10 as designed by the operator and/orauto-generated by the system 100 and (ii) manufacture (and/or provideinstructions for manufacturing) these components in a variety of ways.

However, in other embodiments of the present technology, the system 100may be configured to manufacture (and/or generate data indicative ofinstructions for manufacturing) the at least some components of theorthodontic appliance 10 with minimal or no operator intervention (e.g.,with little or no direct operator control). Put another way, the system100 may be configured to manufacture (and/or generate data indicative ofinstructions for manufacturing) the at least some components of theorthodontic appliance 10 in an automatic or semi-automatic manner. Forexample, to that end, in at least some embodiments of the presenttechnology, the system 100 may be configured to employ computer-readableinstructions (such as software, for example) for auto-manufacturing(and/or generating data indicative of instructions forauto-manufacturing) the at least some components of an orthodonticappliance 10.

In summary, it is contemplated that in at least some embodiments of thepresent technology, the system 100 may or may not require operator inputor interaction for generating 3D representations of at least someorthodontic appliances 10 and for manufacturing (and/or generating dataindicative of instructions for manufacturing) the at least someorthodontic appliances 10.

As depicted in FIG. 8, in at least some embodiments of the presenttechnology, the system 100 comprises a computer system 110 operativelycommunicable with one or both of an imaging device 120 and amanufacturing apparatus 130 through a communication network 135, whichwill now be discussed in turn.

Computer System

Turning first to the computer system 110, certain embodiments of thecomputer system 110 have a computing environment 140 as illustratedschematically in FIG. 9. The computing environment 140 comprises varioushardware components including one or more single or multi-coreprocessors collectively represented by a processor 150, a hard drive 160in this case being a solid-state drive 160, a random access memory 170and an input/output interface 180. Communication between the variouscomponents of the computing environment 140 may be enabled by one ormore internal and/or external buses 190 (e.g. a PCI bus, universalserial bus, IEEE 1394 “Firewire” bus, SCSI bus, Serial-ATA bus, ARINCbus, etc.), to which the various hardware components are electronicallycoupled.

How the processor 150 is implemented is not particularly limited.However, broadly speaking, the processor 150 may be implemented as anelectronic circuit configured to perform operations (e.g., processing)on some data provided thereto from a local and/or remote source, andtypically, from a memory or some other data stream.

How the solid-state drive 160 is implemented is not particularlylimited. However, broadly speaking, the solid-state drive 160 may beimplemented as a solid-state storage device that uses integrated circuitassemblies as memory to persistently store data. Nevertheless, it iscontemplated that other media used as memory to persistently store data,without departing from the scope of the present technology.

How the random access memory 170 is implemented is not particularlylimiting. However, broadly speaking, the random access memory 170 may beimplemented as a form of computer data storage that stores data and/ormachine code (e.g., computer-readable instructions) that is being usedby the computing environment 140. The random access memory 170 isarranged to store one or more of: set-up data, subject data, subjectmedical records of one or more subjects, digital anatomy representationdata of the one or more of the subjects, and orthodontic treatment data.The orthodontic treatment data comprises, for example, materialproperties (e.g. chemical properties, mechanical properties, opticalproperties) of different materials for use in making aligners 22, numberof treatment stages, information on the aligners 22 to be used in thetreatment stages, durations of the treatment stages, desired totaltreatment duration, and the like. Other data relating to any type oforthodontic treatment or orthodontic appliance 10 can also be includedin the random access memory 170. In some embodiments, theabove-mentioned data may also be stored in the solid-state drive 160 ina manner that is suitable for being loaded into the random access memory170.

How the input/output interface 180 is implemented is not particularlylimiting. However, broadly speaking, the input/output interface 180 maybe implemented so as to allow enabling networking capabilities, such aswire or wireless access, for example. As an example, the input/outputinterface 180 comprises a networking interface such as, but not limitedto, a network port, a network socket, a network interface controller andthe like. Multiple examples of how the networking interface may beimplemented will become apparent to the person skilled in the art of thepresent technology. For example, but without being limiting, thenetworking interface may implement specific physical layer and data linklayer standard such as Ethernet™, Fibre Channel, Wi-Fi™ or Token Ring.The specific physical layer and the data link layer may provide a basefor a full network protocol stack, allowing communication among smallgroups of computers on the same local area network (LAN) and large-scalenetwork communications through routable protocols, such as InternetProtocol (IP).

In accordance with at least some implementations of the computingenvironment 140, the solid-state drive 160 may be configured to storeprogram instructions suitable for being loaded into the random accessmemory 170 and executed by the processor 150. For example, the programinstructions may be part of a library and/or a software application thatthe computing environment 140 is configured to execute. In anotherexample, as it will become apparent from the description herein below,the program instructions may be part of a software dedicated forsimulating orthodontic treatments, which program instructions thecomputing environment 140 may be configured to execute.

In this embodiment, the computing environment 140 is implemented in ageneric computer system which is a conventional computer (i.e. an “offthe shelf” generic computer system). The generic computer system is adesktop computer/personal computer, but may also be any other type ofelectronic device such as, but not limited to, a laptop, a mobiledevice, a smart phone, a tablet device, or a server.

In other embodiments, the computing environment 140 is implemented in adevice specifically dedicated to the implementation of the presenttechnology. For example, the computing environment 140 is implemented inan electronic device such as, but not limited to, a desktopcomputer/personal computer, a laptop, a mobile device, a smart phone, atablet device, a server, specifically designed for determiningorthodontic treatments and orthodontic appliances. The electronic devicemay also be dedicated to operating other devices, such as one or more ofthe imaging device 120, and the manufacturing apparatus 130.

In some embodiments, the computer system 110 is connected to one or moreof the imaging device 120, and the manufacturing apparatus 130. In somealternative embodiments, the computer system 110 or the computingenvironment 140 is implemented, at least partially, on one or more ofthe imaging device 120, and the manufacturing apparatus 130. In somealternative embodiments, the computer system 110 or the computingenvironment 140 may be hosted, at least partially, on a server. In somealternative embodiments, the computer system 110 or the computingenvironment 140 may be partially or totally virtualized through cloudarchitecture.

In some embodiments, the computing environment 140 is distributedamongst multiple systems, such as one or more of the imaging device 120,the manufacturing apparatus 130, the server, and cloud environment. Insome embodiments, the computing environment 140 may be at leastpartially implemented in another system, as a sub-system for example. Insome embodiments, the computer system 110 and the computing environment140 may be geographically distributed.

Users of the computer system 110, in certain embodiments, arepractitioners and staff of a given clinic. The computer system 110 mayalso be connected to clinical practice management software which couldbe used for subject appointment scheduling, inventory management (e.g.,for managing stocks of precursor aligners) and other tasks based on thegiven orthodontic treatment and/or in view of other activities and needsof the clinic. It is also contemplated that the computer system 110 mayalso be arranged for being used remotely, such as by users of otherclinics, for example via server or cloud environment.

As persons skilled in the art of the present technology may appreciate,multiple variations as to how the computer system 110 is implemented maybe envisioned without departing from the scope of the presenttechnology.

Interface Device of the Computer System

Referring back to FIG. 8, the computer system 110 has at least oneinterface device 200. Broadly speaking, the interface device 200 of thecomputer system 110 is configured for receiving inputs and/or providingoutputs to the operator of the computer system 110. In the embodiment ofFIG. 8, the interface device 200 includes a display 202 (such as ascreen, for example) for providing a visual output to the operator ofthe computer system 100.

The visual output may include one or more images pertaining to themanufacturing of the orthodontic appliance 10, bending of the archwire14, information relating to the orthodontic treatment including imagesof: the lower arch and/or the upper arch 24, a digital model of thelower arch and/or the upper arch 24 in a current teeth configuration, adigital model of the lower arch and/or the upper arch 24 in a desiredteeth configuration, a digital model of a desired aligner 22. Other datarelated to the orthodontic treatment may also be included in the visualoutput, for example measurements (e.g., distances between anatomicallandmarks, angulation between teeth), geometry (e.g., an occlusal plane)and identifiers (e.g., teeth site numbers, subject identifier). Thevisual output may also include visual data pertaining to operation toany one of the imaging device 120, and the manufacturing apparatus 130.

The interface device 200 may also comprise a keyboard 204 and/or a mouse206 for receiving inputs from the operator of the computer system 110.The interface device 200 may include, in certain embodiments, otherdevices for providing an input to the computer system 110 such as,without limitation, a USB port, a microphone, a camera or the like. Theinterface device 200 may comprise a tablet, a mobile telephone, or anyother electronic device.

In some embodiments, the interface device 200 may be configured toimplement the computing environment 140 of FIG. 9 for processing inputsand/or outputs for the operator of the computer system 110. Put anotherway, the interface device 200 of the computer system 110 may comprisesome or all components of the computing environment 140, withoutdeparting from the scope of the present technology. In some embodimentsof the present technology, the interface device 200 implementing thecomputing environment 140 may be configured to execute software programsand/or applications for the purpose of aiding the operator of thecomputer system 110 during design of at least some components of theorthodontic appliance 10 or of the orthodontic treatment.

For instance, the interface device 200 may be configured to executeComputer-Aided Design (CAD) software. Broadly speaking, CAD software istypically used for increasing the productivity of the operator duringthe design process, improving the quality of the design itself, andgenerating digital models for manufacturing purposes. For instance, whenexecuted by the interface device 200, the CAD software may be used bythe operator of the computer system 110 for inter aliaimporting/exporting 3D models, designing curves, surfaces, and/or solidsin a 3D virtual environment, and the like.

It is contemplated that the interface device 200 may be configured toexecute any 3D graphics software that aids the operator of the computersystem 110 during design of the at least some components of theorthodontic appliance 10 or the orthodontic treatment.

In other embodiments of the present technology, the interface device 200implementing the computing environment 140 may be configured to executesoftware programs and/or applications for the purpose of generating 3Drepresentations of the at least some components of the orthodonticappliance 10 in an automatic and/or semi-automatic manner (e.g., withlittle or no intervention of the operator). For instance, such softwareprograms and/or applications may be configured to acquire informationrepresentative of at least a portion of the oral region of the subjectand, based on that information, automatically and/or semi-automaticallygenerate 3D representations of the at least some components of theorthodontic appliance 10. In at least some embodiments of the presenttechnology, such software programs and/or applications may be employedby the computer system 110 for execution of at least somecomputer-implemented methods disclosed herein.

Communication Network

As mentioned above, the system 100 may also comprise the communicationnetwork 135. In some embodiments of the present technology, thecommunication network 135 is the Internet. In alternative non-limitingembodiments, the communication network can be implemented as anysuitable local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), a privatecommunication network or the like. It should be expressly understoodthat implementations for the communication network are for illustrationpurposes only.

The communication network 135 may provide a communication link (notseparately numbered) between one or more of the computer system 110 andthe imaging device 120, the manufacturing apparatus 130, and theinterface device 200. How the communication network 135 is implementedwill depend inter alia on how the computer system 110, the imagingdevice 120, the manufacturing apparatus 130, and the interface device200 are implemented. Merely as an example and not as a limitation, inthose embodiments of the present technology where the computer system110 is implemented as a wireless communication device such as asmartphone or a tablet, the communication link can be implemented as awireless communication link. Examples of wireless communication linksinclude, but are not limited to, a 3G communication network link, a 4Gcommunication network link, and the like.

In some embodiments of the present technology, the communication network135 may allow the computer system 110 to provide and/or acquireinformation from external/remote computer systems. For example, thecommunication network 135 may communicatively couple the computer system110 with computer systems of other operators and/or of other entities,such as orthodontic clinics.

Imaging Device

As mentioned above, in certain embodiments, the system also comprisesthe imaging device 120. Broadly speaking, the imaging device 120 may beimplemented as any imaging system that is configured to capture and/orprocess images of a subject's oral region. In some embodiments, it iscontemplated that the imaging device 120 may be configured to captureand/or process images of teeth 16 and/or surrounding tissues of thesubject's mouth. For instance, the information representative of atleast a portion of the oral region of the subject may be composed, atleast partially, of the images captured and/or processed by the imagingdevice 120.

In some embodiments, the images captured and/or processed by the imagingdevice 120 may include, but are not limited to: images of crown portionsof teeth 16 (internal and/or external), images of root portions of teeth(internal and/or external), images of tissues surrounding the teeth,images of nerve pathways in the teeth and/or in the surrounding tissues,images of bones such as jaw bones, other images of the oral region, andthe like.

In certain embodiments, the image data received from such devices isindicative of properties of anatomical structures of the subject,including: teeth, intraoral mucosa, maxilla, mandible, temporomandibularjoint, and nerve pathways, among other structures. In some embodiments,at least some of the image data is indicative of properties of externalportions of the anatomical structures, for example dimensions of agingival sulcus, and dimensions of an external portion of a tooth (e.g.,a crown of the tooth) extending outwardly of the gingival sulcus. Insome embodiments, the image data is indicative of properties of internalportions of the anatomical structures, for example volumetric propertiesof bone surrounding an internal portion of the tooth (e.g., a root ofthe tooth) extending inwardly of the gingival sulcus. Under certaincircumstances, such volumetric properties may be indicative ofperiodontal anomalies which may be factored into an orthodontictreatment plan. In some embodiments, the image data includescephalometric image datasets. In some embodiments, the image dataincludes datasets generally intended for the practice of endodontics. Insome embodiments, the image data includes datasets generally intendedfor the practice of periodontics.

It should be noted that images captured and/or processed by the imagingdevice 120 may be in 2D and/or 3D. For example, the images capturedand/or processed by the imaging device 120 may be, but are not limitedto: computed tomography (CT) images, x-ray images, digitalized 3Dphysical model images, magnetic resonance images, nuclear medicineimages, photographic images, and the like. Any type of image formatvisualizing the tooth and/or the surrounding areas may be potentiallyacceptable within the context of the present technology.

In some embodiments of the present technology, the imaging device 120may be implemented as an intra-oral scanner for providing 3D digitalmodels of the teeth 16 of the subject (e.g., 3D representations of theteeth 16 of the subject). Typically, intra-oral scanners have acomponent that (i) can be received in the oral region, (ii) has a lightsource for providing light to the oral region requiring imaging, and(iii) has an imaging sensor for capturing images of the oral region. Itis contemplated that the intra-oral scanner may comprise an internalcomputer system that can (i) receive the captured images and (ii)generate digital 3D surface models (for example, in a “mesh” form) ofthe oral region. This technique provides an alternative to makingtraditional plaster models of the oral region followed by their digitalimaging.

In other embodiments of the present technology, the imaging device 120may be implemented as a Computed Tomography (CT) scanner for providingCT scan images. Typically, CT scan images are 3D images and providex-ray level detail of the teeth, soft tissues, nerve pathways and bone.Optionally, other types of CT scanners can be used to provide panoramic,cephalometric or cone beam projections, without departing from the scopeof the present technology.

In further embodiments of the present technology, the imaging device 120may be implemented as any one of or any combination of: an x-rayapparatus for providing x-ray 2D images of the oral region, a magneticresonance imaging device for providing magnetic resonance images, anultrasound apparatus for providing ultrasound images of the oral region,and the like. Irrespective of the particular implementation of theimaging device 120, it is contemplated that the imaging device 120 maycomprise at least one hardware processor for processing the images andat least one memory component for storing the images.

Alternatively, as contemplated in other embodiments, the imaging device120 may be a camera for indirect digitization of intraoral anatomy via areplica (i.e., a dental model). In some such embodiments, the replica isobtainable via a dental impression (i.e., a negative mold) made of amaterial (such as polyvinyl-siloxane) having been imprinted with theshape of the intraoral anatomy it has been applied to. Alternatively, inother embodiments, the digital surface model may be generated viadigitizing the dental impression.

The format in which the 3D image is generated by the imaging device 120and/or acquired by the computer system is not particularly limited.However, as an example, the 3D image may be generated by the imagingdevice and/or acquired by the computer system in STL format and/or OBJformat.

In the context of the present technology, it is contemplated that the 3Dimage is a 3D representation of the at least the portion of the oralregion of the subject. It can thus be said that the 3D image is a 3Dobject representative of the at least the portion of the oral region ofthe subject.

Manufacturing Apparatus

As mentioned above, in certain embodiments the system 100 also comprisesthe manufacturing apparatus 130. Broadly speaking, the manufacturingapparatus 130 comprises any manufacturing system that may be configuredto manufacture at least some components of the orthodontic appliance 10.For instance, the manufacturing apparatus 130 may be configured to interalia (i) acquire data indicative of instructions for manufacturing theat least some components of the orthodontic appliance 10, and (ii)execute those instructions for manufacturing the at least somecomponents of the orthodontic appliance 10.

The manufacturing apparatus 130 may be configured to manufacture avariety of components of the orthodontic appliance 10 such as, but notlimited to: platforms, brackets 12, archwires 14, aligners 22, trainers,retainers, mouth-guards, and/or any other type of orthodontic appliance10.

In some embodiments, where the manufacturing apparatus 130 is configuredto manufacture brackets 12 of a bracket/archwire system 10 a, themanufacturing apparatus 130 may include, but is not limited to: acasting apparatus, a molding apparatus, an additive manufacturingapparatus (e.g., 3D printing apparatus), a melting apparatus, and thelike.

In other embodiments, where the manufacturing apparatus 130 isconfigured to manufacture archwires 14, the manufacturing apparatus 130may include, but is not limited to: a robotic bending apparatus, aheating/cooling apparatus, a smart material manufacturing apparatus, andthe like.

In further embodiments, where the manufacturing apparatus is configuredto manufacture aligners 22, trainers, retainers and/or mouth-guards, themanufacturing apparatus may include, but is not limited to: athermoforming apparatus, a molding apparatus, an additive manufacturingapparatus (e.g., 3D printer), and the like.

It is contemplated that the system 100 may also include a combination ofvarious types of manufacturing apparatuses 130 for manufacturing avarious types of components of the orthodontic appliance 10, withoutdeparting from the scope of the present technology.

In some embodiments of the present technology, the computer system 110(i.e. the processor thereof) is configured to perform a method 300 fordetermining or optimizing an orthodontic treatment for the subject (FIG.10). More specifically, in certain embodiments, the processor 150 of thecomputer system 110 is configured to determine whether there is acollision between opposing teeth 16 of the lower arch and the upper arch24 of the subject, and to optimize a proposed orthodontic treatmentbased on the determined collision. By collision is meant malocclusion orimproper bite in certain embodiments.

STEP 310: obtaining a 3D model of upper teeth of an upper archform andlower teeth of a lower archform of a subject, the 3D modelrepresentative of a simulated position of the upper teeth and the lowerteeth following a simulated orthodontic treatment, the 3D modelcomprising a point cloud representation of the upper teeth and the lowerteeth, the point cloud representation comprising a plurality of vectorpoints representative of the upper teeth and the lower teeth.

Step 310 of the method 300 comprises the processor 150 acquiring a 3Dmodel 312 of the plurality of teeth 16. In certain embodiments, theplurality of teeth 16 comprise upper teeth 16 a of an upper archform 302and lower teeth 16 b of a lower archform 304 (FIGS. 11A and B). An imageof a single tooth 16 of the plurality of teeth is shown in FIG. 12A, andthe 3D model of the single tooth of FIG. 12A is illustrated in FIG. 12B.The 3D model of FIG. 12B being a portion of the 3D model 312 of theplurality of teeth. The 3D model 312 of the teeth 16 may berepresentative of a proposed orthodontic treatment for the plurality ofteeth 16, and may include information relating to one or more of: theinitial position 42 of one or more teeth 16 of the plurality of teeth16, the desired position 44 of one or more teeth 16 of the plurality ofteeth 16, and the trajectory 46 defining the path of movement of one ormore teeth 16 of the plurality of teeth 16 to move from the initialposition 42 to the desired position 44. Embodiments of the method 300will be described below in relation to one tooth 16 of the plurality ofteeth 16 (“the given tooth 16”), but it will be understood thatembodiments of the method 300 can also apply to more than one tooth 16of the upper teeth 16 a and lower teeth 16 b of the subject.

Information Relating to the Initial Position 42, the Desired Position44, and the Trajectory 46

The initial position 42 of the tooth 16 of the subject can be obtainedin any known manner, such as through software in which the initialposition 42 of the tooth 16 is identified using the imaging device 120,and a 3D digital model 312 of the tooth 16 created therefrom. FIGS. 11Aand B illustrate an image 314 of the upper teeth 16 a and the lowerteeth 16 b in the upper and lower archforms 302, 304, respectively, inthe initial position 42 in one example, as acquired by the intra-oralscanner as the imaging device 120.

In certain embodiments, the 3D model 312 representative of the proposedorthodontic treatment includes information relating to the initialposition 42 of the tooth 16. The information relating to the initialposition 42 may comprise a vector or a coordinate defining the initialposition 42 of the tooth 16, which may be relative to at least one othertooth 16 of the plurality of teeth 16 or to a reference point.

In this respect, the method 300 may further comprise the processor 150determining the initial position 42 of the tooth 16 by obtaining animage of the tooth 16, and determining a 3D model of the tooth 16 fromthe image 314 of the tooth 16. The method 300 may further comprise theprocessor 150 obtaining a 3D model of the tooth 16 representative of theinitial position 42 of the tooth 16.

In certain embodiments, the 3D model 312 representative of the proposedorthodontic treatment also includes information relating to the desiredposition 44 of the tooth 16. The information relating to the desiredposition 44 of the tooth 16 may comprise a vector or a coordinatedefining a desired position 44 of the tooth 16 of the plurality of teeth16, which may be relative to at least one other tooth 16 of theplurality of teeth 16 or to a reference point.

The desired position 44 may have been determined in any suitable manner.In certain embodiments, the desired position 44 may have been determinedby the processor 150 of the computer system 110, or by another computersystem, such as by manipulating a 3D model derived from the image of theteeth 16 showing the initial position 42 of the tooth 16. In thisrespect, the method 300 may further comprise the processor 150determining the desired position 44 of the given tooth 16 by parsing theimage of the tooth 16 or a 3D model of the tooth 16. The method 300 mayfurther comprise obtaining a 3D model of the tooth 16, and optionallyparsing the 3D model 312 of the tooth 16 to determine the desiredposition 44 of the tooth 16.

In other embodiments, the desired position 44 of the tooth 16 may bedetermined manually, such as using a physical model, such as a plastermodel, of the initial position 42 of the tooth 16. In these embodiments,the physical model may be digitized to create a 3D model of the desiredposition 44 of the tooth 16.

In certain embodiments, the 3D model 312 representative of the simulatedorthodontic treatment includes information relating to the trajectory 46defining the path of movement of the tooth 16 of the plurality of teeth16 from the initial position 42 to the desired position 44.

The trajectory 46 may be a direct path between the initial position 42and the desired position 44. The trajectory 46 is defined, in certainembodiments, by a distance of movement and a direction of movement. Thedirection of movement may be defined relative to x, y, z planes in asimulation space 315.

In certain embodiments, the method 300 comprises the processor 150determining the trajectory 46 based on the initial position 42 and thedesired position 44 of the tooth 16. Alternatively, the method 300comprises acquiring the trajectory 46 as an input from the user or fromanother source.

It will be appreciated that the trajectory 46 is representative of aproposed trajectory 46. Embodiments of the method 300, in later steps,will serve to either validate the proposed trajectory 46 and thus theproposed orthodontic treatment (thereby determining the proposedorthodontic treatment as the determined orthodontic treatment), or toadjust the proposed trajectory 46 and thus the proposed orthodontictreatment (thereby determining the adjusted orthodontic treatment as thedetermined orthodontic treatment).

3D Model

Referring now to FIGS. 12A and 12B, the 3D model 312 of the upper teeth16 a and the lower teeth 16 b comprises a point cloud representation 316of the upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b, and more specifically,a point cloud representation 316 of a surface 318 of the upper teeth 16a and the lower teeth 16 b (the surface 318 of the given tooth 16 can beseen in FIG. 12A). The point cloud representation of the upper teeth 16a and the lower teeth 16 b comprises a set of data points in thesimulation space 315, the data points being vector points 319 (such asx, y and z coordinates). As seen in FIG. 12B, the vector points 319 arespaced from one another in a manner known in the art. They may be spacedregularly or irregularly. Point cloud representation differs from thatof conventional 3D models of teeth, such as triangular meshes, in thatthey include only the information about the vertices but not the surfacetriangles. In at least some non-limiting embodiments of the presenttechnology, use of point cloud representation can reduce computationalprocessing requirements.

In certain embodiments, the 3D model 312 of the upper teeth 16 a and thelower teeth 16 b comprises a plurality of vector spheres 322 (FIG. 13).Each vector sphere 322 comprises a sphere 324 centered at a vectorpoint, such as the vector point 319 of FIG. 12B. The spheres 324 havepredetermined diameters (FIG. 13). In this respect, the method 300further comprises, in certain embodiments, transforming each vectorpoint 319 of the plurality of vector points 319 into a vector sphere322, the vector sphere 322 comprising the sphere 324 with thepredetermined diameter and centered at each vector point 319.

Developers have noted that detection of collision or malocclusionbetween the upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b (which will bedescribed below) is facilitated when the 3D model 312 is represented bythe plurality of vector spheres 322 as distances between the vectorspheres 322 are more easily determined as opposed to distances betweenideal mathematical points with infinitely small radii.

In certain embodiments, the point cloud representation 316 of the upperteeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b is obtained by converting anothertype of model of the upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b, such asa triangular mesh 3D model, to the point cloud representation 316.

In certain embodiments, the point cloud representation 316 of the upperteeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b is obtained by converting a digitalimage of the upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b, such as theimage 314 in FIGS. 11 and 12A, to the point cloud representation 316.

In certain embodiments, the method 300 comprises obtaining the 3D model312 of the upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b based on image dataof the upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b, and parsing the imagedata of the upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b or the 3D model312 of the upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b to segment eachtooth 16 of the upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b, in order toallow independent manipulation of each tooth 16. In certain embodiments,the segmentation may also comprise separating the teeth 16 from softtissue surrounding the teeth 16.

STEP 320: identifying whether there is collision between the upper teethand the lower teeth in the simulated position

The method 300 continues with Step 320 in which the processor 150detects whether there is collision between the upper teeth 16 a and thelower teeth 16 b in the simulated position. This is performed using a 3Dgrid 326 in a simulation space 328 onto which the plurality of thevector points 319 representative of the upper teeth 16 a and the lowerteeth 16 b have been mapped (FIG. 14). The method 300 may furthercomprise mapping the vector points 319 representative of the upper teeth16 a and the lower teeth 16 b onto the 3D grid 326.

The identification of the collision between the upper teeth 16 a and thelower teeth 16 b is performed, in certain embodiments, by steps 330,340, 350 and 360 of the method 300.

STEP 330: identifying cells of the 3D grid containing vectors pointsrepresentative of the upper teeth; and identifying cells of the 3D gridcontaining vectors points representative of the lower teeth

Referring to FIG. 15, in Step 330, the method 300 comprises identifyingcells 332 of the 3D grid 326 containing vectors points 319representative of the upper teeth 16 a (also referred to as “upper teethcells 334”), and identifying cells 332 of the 3D grid 326 containingvector points 319 representative of the lower teeth 16 b (also referredto as “lower teeth cells 336”).

In step 340, the method 300 comprises applying a first mask 338 to theupper teeth cells 332 (i.e. those cells 332 in the 3D grid 326 whichinclude vector points 319 representative of the upper teeth) (alsoreferred to as “masked upper teeth cells”). In step 350, the method 300comprises applying a second mask 342 to the lower teeth cells 332 (i.e.those cells 332 in the 3D grid 326 which include vector points 319representative of the lower teeth 16 b) (also referred to as “maskedlower teeth cells”). The first mask 338 and the second mask 342 can beconsidered as identifiers or markers of cells 332 containing vectorpoints 319 associated with the upper 16 a and the lower teeth 16,respectively. The first and second masks 338, 342 can take any suitableform.

In step 350, the method 300 comprises determining if there is at leastone cell 332 of the 3D grid 326 which includes both the first mask 338and the second mask 342. In other words, it is determined whether any ofthe masked upper teeth cells and the masked lower teeth cells are thesame cell.

STEP 360: if the 3D grid does not include at least one cell whichincludes both the first mask and the second mask, determining that thereis no collision between the upper teeth and the lower teeth, anddetermining the simulated orthodontic treatment as the determinedorthodontic treatment, if there is at least one cell in the 3D gridwhich includes both the first mask and the second mask, determining thatthere is collision between the upper teeth and the lower teeth, andadjusting the simulated orthodontic treatment.

The method 300 then comprises determining whether there is collisionbetween the upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b by identifying ifthe 3D grid 326 includes at least one cell 332 which includes both thefirst mask 338 and the second mask 242. In other words, the method 300comprises determining that there is collision between the upper teeth 16a and the lower teeth 16 b if at least one cell 332 is determined to beboth a masked upper teeth cell 332 and a masked lower teeth cell 332. Ifthere is no cell 332 of the 3D grid 326 that includes the first mask 338and the second mask 342, the method 300 determines that there is nocollision of the upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b, and thesimulated orthodontic treatment is determined as the determinedorthodontic treatment. If the method 300 determines that there iscollision between the upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b, themethod 300 determines that adjustment of the simulated orthodontictreatment is required.

Adjusting the Orthodontic Treatment

In certain embodiments, the adjusting the simulated orthodontictreatment comprises adjusting the trajectory 46 of movement of the tooth16 from the initial position 42 to the desired position. The adjustmentis made to avoid collision between the upper teeth 16 a and the lowerteeth 16 b during the proposed orthodontic treatment, or to keep theextent of collision within a predetermined limit. In certainembodiments, the predetermined limit may be defined as contact betweenthe upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b that does not cause amalocclusion or bad bite.

An example of such an adjustment is illustrated in FIGS. 16A-16C. InFIG. 16A, the proposed orthodontic treatment for the tooth 16 c isillustrated by trajectory 46 defining a direct path from the initialposition 42 to the desired position of the tooth 16 c. As mentionedearlier, the trajectory 46 is defined in terms of the direction ofmovement and the distance of movement (magnitude of movement). Theproposed orthodontic treatment may result in a predicted collision event(FIG. 16B). One example of an adjustment to the trajectory 46 isillustrated in FIG. 16C, in which instead of the trajectory 46 in asingle direction, the tooth 16 c is moved in a first direction (e.g.along the x-axis plane) for a first distance past tooth 16 b, beforebeing moved in a second direction for a second distance (e.g. along they-axis plane towards the desired position 44), thereby avoidingcollision with the tooth 16 b.

Another example of the adjusting the simulated orthodontic treatmentcomprises adjusting a separation of the upper archform 302 and the lowerarchform 304. For example, if collision between any one of the upperteeth 16 a and any one of the lower teeth 16 b is detected, the method300 comprises adapting the orthodontic treatment such that the lowerarchform 304 is moved away from the upper archform 302, with the upperarchform 302 being kept stationary. For each adjusted position, themethod 300 is repeated to determine whether there is any collisionbetween the upper teeth 302 and the lower teeth 304, until it isdetermined that there is no collision between the upper teeth 302 andthe lower teeth 304.

In other embodiments, the adjusting the simulated orthodontic treatmentcomprises adapting the orthodontic treatment such that the upperarchform 302 is moved away from the lower archform 304, with the lowerarchform 304 being kept stationary.

In yet further embodiments, the upper archform 302 and the lowerarchform 304 are both moved.

In certain embodiments, the method 300 further comprises executing asimulation of the movement of the teeth 16 according to the adjustedorthodontic treatment, to obtain an adjusted 3D model of the teeth 16.In the example illustrated in FIG. 16B, the simulation of the movementof the teeth 16 according to the adjusted orthodontic treatmentcomprises movement of the tooth 16 c in the first direction for thefirst distance and in the second direction for the second distance.

In certain embodiments, the adjusted simulated movement isrepresentative of one or more of: a different direction of movement, anda different distance of movement compared to the proposed orthodontictreatment.

In certain embodiments, the method 300 further comprises identifying amagnitude of collision of the upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b,and determining the adjusted simulated movement by an amountproportional to the identified magnitude of collision. The amount may be50% of the identified magnitude of collision. In certain embodiments,the adjusted simulated movement is representative of a shorter distanceof movement of the plurality of teeth 16 to the adjusted simulatedposition.

In certain embodiments, the adjusted simulated movement comprises aniterative movement of one or both of the upper archform 302 and thelower archform 304 away from one another, until there is not furthercollision determined between the upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16b.

The method 300 may further comprise iteratively executing at least oneor more of: Steps 310, 320, 330, 340, 350 and 360 for the positionsrepresented in the adjusted simulated movement until it is determinedthat there is no collision between any of the upper teeth 16 a and thelower teeth 16 b.

In certain embodiments, the iterative execution comprises updating thepoint cloud representation 316 of the plurality of teeth 16 with anadjusted position of the plurality of teeth 16 following the adjustedsimulated orthodontic treatment, and determining whether there iscollision or not between opposing teeth 16 of the upper and lowerarchforms 302, 304, until it is determined that there is no collisionbetween the teeth 16.

In certain embodiments, when there is no collision detected, one or bothof the upper archform 302 and the lower archform 304 are brought towardsone another, and the method 300 repeated until a collision is detected.This can help to determine an optimal spacing of the upper archform 302and the lower archform 304 from another.

False Negatives or False Positives

In certain embodiments, the method 300 further comprises detecting oneor more of false positives and false negatives. For example, gridresolution is controlled such that the grid cells 332 are kept at about10-50 microns.

In certain embodiments, false positives and false negatives are avoidedor reduced by providing cells having a size in which dead zones betweencells are negligible.

Display Output

In certain embodiments, the method further comprises sendinginstructions to a display device, such as the display 202, operablyconnected to the processor 150, to display the collision as a pictorialrepresentation of the collision or an alphanumerical representation ofthe collision (FIGS. 17A and 17B).

Orthodontic Appliance Output

In certain embodiments, the method 300 further comprises designing theorthodontic appliance 10 to administer the determined orthodontictreatment. The method 300 may further comprise sending instructions to amanufacturing apparatus, such as the manufacturing apparatus 130operably connected to the processor 150, for making at least a componentof the orthodontic appliance 10 to administer the determined orthodontictreatment.

Detecting Appliance-Tooth Collisions

In certain embodiments, the method 300 comprises detecting collisionsbetween one or more teeth 16 of the subject, whether they be the upperteeth 16 a or the lower teeth 16 b) and the orthodontic appliance 10associated with the teeth 16.

In such embodiments, the 3D model 312 further includes a representationof a simulated position of the orthodontic appliance 10 relative to thesimulated position of the plurality of teeth 16, the 3D model 312 of theorthodontic appliance 10 comprising a point cloud representation of theorthodontic appliance 10. As before, the point cloud representationcomprises a plurality of vector points 319 representative of theorthodontic appliance 10.

The method 300 comprises identifying whether there is collision betweenthe orthodontic appliance 10 and the one or both of the upper teeth 16 aand the lower teeth 16 b in the simulated position by: in the 3D grid326 in the simulation space 328 onto which the plurality of the vectorpoints 319 representative of the upper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16b have been mapped, identifying the cells 332 of the 3D grid 326containing vectors points 319 representative of the one or both of theupper teeth 16 a and the lower teeth 16 b; identifying cells of the 3Dgrid 326 containing vectors points 319 representative of the orthodonticappliance 10; applying a first mask to the cells in the 3D grid whichinclude vector points representative of the one or both of the upperteeth and the lower teeth; applying a second mask to the cells in the 3Dgrid which include vector points representative of the orthodonticappliance; and determining if there is at least one cell in the 3D gridwhich includes both the first mask and the second mask.

Detecting Appliance-Appliance Collisions

In certain embodiments, the method 300 comprises detecting collisionsbetween a given one of the plurality of orthodontic appliances 10 (e.g.a first orthodontic appliance and a second orthodontic appliance)associated with the teeth 16 and one or more of the teeth 16. In somenon-limiting embodiments of the present technology, the detection ofcollisions between the given one of the plurality of orthodonticappliances 10 (e.g. a first orthodontic appliance and a secondorthodontic appliance) associated with the teeth 16 and one or more ofthe teeth 16 is done in addition to detection of collision between oneor more of the teeth 16. In other non-limiting embodiments of thepresent technology, the appliance-teeth collision can be executedinstead of the tooth-tooth collision detection.

In these embodiments, the method 300 differs from that of detecting theappliance-tooth collisions in that once the first and the secondorthodontic appliance and the teeth have been mapped onto the 3D grid,the method 300 comprises identifying cells of the 3D grid containingvectors points representative of the first orthodontic appliance;identifying cells of the 3D grid containing vectors pointsrepresentative of the second orthodontic appliance; applying a firstmask to the cells in the 3D grid which include vector pointsrepresentative of the first orthodontic appliance; applying a secondmask to the cells in the 3D grid which include vector pointsrepresentative of the second orthodontic appliance; and determining ifthere is at least one cell in the 3D grid which includes both the firstmask and the second mask.

Advantageously, in certain embodiments of any of the above, as only asubset of all potential vector points are analyzed for collision, thiscan reduce the computational power requirements of the system.

It should be expressly understood that not all technical effectsmentioned herein need to be enjoyed in each and every embodiment of thepresent technology.

Modifications and improvements to the above-described implementations ofthe present technology may become apparent to those skilled in the art.The foregoing description is intended to be exemplary rather thanlimiting. The scope of the present technology is therefore intended tobe limited solely by the scope of the appended claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A method of determining an orthodontictreatment for a subject, the method executable by a processor, themethod comprising: obtaining a 3D model of upper teeth of an upperarchform and lower teeth of a lower archform of a subject, the 3D modelrepresentative of a simulated position of the upper teeth and the lowerteeth following a simulated orthodontic treatment, the 3D modelcomprising a point cloud representation of the upper teeth and the lowerteeth, the point cloud representation comprising a plurality of vectorpoints representative of the upper teeth and the lower teeth;identifying whether there is collision between the upper teeth and thelower teeth in the simulated position by: in a 3D grid in a simulationspace onto which the plurality of the vector points representative ofthe upper teeth and the lower teeth have been mapped, identifying cellsof the 3D grid containing vectors points representative of the upperteeth; identifying cells of the 3D grid containing vectors pointsrepresentative of the lower teeth; applying a first mask to the cells inthe 3D grid which include vector points representative of the upperteeth; applying a second mask to the cells in the 3D grid which includevector points representative of the lower teeth; determining if there isat least one cell in the 3D grid which includes both the first mask andthe second mask; and selectively executing: if the 3D grid does notinclude at least one cell which includes both the first mask and thesecond mask, determining that there is no collision between the upperteeth and the lower teeth, and determining the simulated orthodontictreatment as the determined orthodontic treatment, if there is at leastone cell in the 3D grid which includes both the first mask and thesecond mask, determining that there is collision between the upper teethand the lower teeth, and adjusting the simulated orthodontic treatment.2. The method of claim 1, further comprising transforming each vectorpoint of the plurality of vector points into a vector sphererepresentative of the upper teeth and the lower teeth, the vector spherecomprising a sphere having a predetermined diameter and centered at eachvector point.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the obtaining the pointcloud representation of the upper teeth and the lower teeth comprisesobtaining a triangular mesh 3D model of the upper teeth and the lowerteeth and converting the triangular mesh 3D model of the upper teeth andthe lower teeth to the point cloud representation.
 4. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising segmenting the 3D model of the upper teethand the lower teeth to distinguish the upper teeth and the lower teeth.5. The method of claim 1, further comprising iteratively updating thepoint cloud representation of the upper teeth and the lower teeth withan adjusted position of the upper teeth and the lower teeth followingthe adjusted simulated orthodontic treatment, and determining whetherthere is collision or not between the upper teeth and the lower teeth,until it is determined that there is no collision between the upperteeth and the lower teeth.
 6. The method of claim 5, further comprisingexecuting the adjusted simulation of the upper teeth and the lower teethby adapting a simulated movement of at least one of: the upper teeth andthe lower teeth from the simulated position to an adjusted simulatedposition.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein the adapted simulatedmovement is representative of a shorter distance of movement of theupper teeth and the lower teeth from one another to the adjustedsimulated position.
 8. The method of claim 1, further comprisingobtaining the 3D model representative of the simulated position of theupper teeth and the lower teeth following the simulated orthodontictreatment by executing the simulation of the movement of the upper teethand the lower teeth from an initial position to the simulated position.9. The method of claim 1, further comprising detecting one or more offalse positives and false negatives.
 10. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising identifying a magnitude of collision of the upper teeth andthe lower teeth, and adjusting the simulated position of the upper teethand the lower teeth by an amount proportional to the identifiedmagnitude of collision.
 11. The method of claim 1, further comprisingsending instructions to a display device operably connected to theprocessor to display the collision as a pictorial representation of thecollision or as an alphanumerical representation of the collision. 12.The method of claim 1, further comprising designing the orthodonticappliance to administer the confirmed orthodontic treatment.
 13. Themethod of claim 12, further comprising sending instructions to amanufacturing apparatus operably connected to the processor for makingat least a component of the orthodontic appliance to administer theconfirmed orthodontic treatment.
 14. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising mapping the plurality of vector points representative of theupper teeth and the lower teeth onto the 3D grid of the simulationspace.
 15. The method of claim 1, further comprising segmenting the 3Dmodel of one or both of the upper teeth and the lower teeth todistinguish individual teeth of one or both of the upper teeth and thelower teeth, and wherein the method comprises identifying whether thereis collision between a given upper tooth of the upper teeth and a givenlower tooth of the lower teeth by: identifying cells of the 3D gridcontaining vector points representative of the given upper tooth of theupper teeth; identifying cells of the 3D grid containing vectors pointsrepresentative of the given lower tooth of the lower teeth; applying afirst mask to the cells in the 3D grid which include vector pointsrepresentative of the given upper tooth of the upper teeth; applying asecond mask to the cells in the 3D grid which include vector pointsrepresentative of the given lower tooth of the lower teeth; determiningif there is at least one cell in the 3D grid which includes both thefirst mask and the second mask.
 16. The method of claim 1, wherein the3D model representative of a simulated position of the upper teeth andthe lower teeth following a simulated orthodontic treatment includes a3D model of an orthodontic appliance associated with one or both of theupper and the lower teeth, the 3D model representative of a simulatedposition of the orthodontic appliance relative to the one or both of theupper teeth and the lower teeth, the 3D model of the orthodonticappliance comprising a point cloud representation of the orthodonticappliance, the point cloud representation comprising a plurality ofvector points representative of the orthodontic appliance; identifyingwhether there is collision between the orthodontic appliance and the oneor both of the upper teeth and the lower teeth in the simulated positionby: in a 3D grid in a simulation space onto which the plurality of thevector points representative of the upper teeth and the lower teeth havebeen mapped, identifying cells of the 3D grid containing vectors pointsrepresentative of the one or both of the upper teeth and the lowerteeth; identifying cells of the 3D grid containing vectors pointsrepresentative of the orthodontic appliance; applying a first mask tothe cells in the 3D grid which include vector points representative ofthe one or both of the upper teeth and the lower teeth; applying asecond mask to the cells in the 3D grid which include vector pointsrepresentative of the orthodontic appliance; determining if there is atleast one cell in the 3D grid which includes both the first mask and thesecond mask.
 17. The method of claim 1, wherein the 3D modelrepresentative of a simulated position of the upper teeth and the lowerteeth following a simulated orthodontic treatment includes a 3D model ofa first orthodontic appliance and a second orthodontic applianceassociated with one or both of the upper and the lower teeth, the 3Dmodel representative of a simulated position of the first orthodonticappliance and the second orthodontic appliance relative to the one orboth of the upper teeth and the lower teeth, the 3D model of the firstorthodontic appliance and the second orthodontic appliance comprising apoint cloud representation of the first orthodontic appliance and thesecond orthodontic appliance, the point cloud representation comprisinga plurality of vector points representative of the first orthodonticappliance and the second orthodontic appliance; identifying whetherthere is collision between the first orthodontic appliance and thesecond orthodontic appliance in the simulated position by: in a 3D gridin a simulation space onto which the plurality of the vector pointsrepresentative of the upper teeth and the lower teeth have been mapped,identifying cells of the 3D grid containing vectors pointsrepresentative of the first orthodontic appliance; identifying cells ofthe 3D grid containing vectors points representative of the secondorthodontic appliance; applying a first mask to the cells in the 3D gridwhich include vector points representative of the first orthodonticappliance; applying a second mask to the cells in the 3D grid whichinclude vector points representative of the second orthodonticappliance; determining if there is at least one cell in the 3D gridwhich includes both the first mask and the second mask.